🍳 Food & Cooking Verbs
In this section you will learn useful Spanish verbs for cooking, preparing food, following recipes, and talking about eating and meals.
🟢 Basic Cooking Verbs
👨🍳 To cook → Cocinar
🔥 To bake → Hornear
🍲 To boil → Hervir
🍳 To fry → Freír
🥩 To grill / roast → Asar
🥗 To prepare → Preparar
🟡 Food Preparation Verbs
🔪 To cut → Cortar
🔪 To chop → Picar
🥕 To peel → Pelar
🥄 To mix → Mezclar
🥣 To stir → Revolver
🧂 To add → Agregar / Añadir
🧈 To melt → Derretir
🥘 To heat → Calentar
🧊 To cool → Enfriar
🍽️ To serve → Servir
🔵 Eating & Meal Verbs
🍽️ To eat → Comer
🥤 To drink → Beber
😋 To try / taste → Probar
🍴 To order / ask for → Pedir
🍰 To share → Compartir
👍 To enjoy → Disfrutar
📖 Useful Recipe Actions
🔪 Corta las verduras en trozos pequeños.
Cut the vegetables into small pieces.
Cut the vegetables into small pieces.
🥕 Pela las papas antes de cocinarlas.
Peel the potatoes before cooking them.
Peel the potatoes before cooking them.
🥄 Mezcla bien todos los ingredientes.
Mix all the ingredients well.
Mix all the ingredients well.
🧂 Agrega sal y pimienta al gusto.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
Add salt and pepper to taste.
🥣 Revuelve la sopa lentamente.
Stir the soup slowly.
Stir the soup slowly.
🔥 Calienta el horno antes de cocinar.
Heat the oven before cooking.
Heat the oven before cooking.
🧠 Useful Language Tip
Cooking instructions often use command forms such as corta, mezcla, agrega, and revuelve. You will often see these forms in recipes and hear them when someone is explaining how to prepare a dish.
Agregar and añadir can both mean "to add." The word you hear most often may depend on the Spanish-speaking region.
Probar is commonly used when trying or tasting food: Quiero probar la sopa.
💬 Common Food & Cooking Phrases
🍳 Me gusta cocinar los fines de semana.
I like to cook on weekends.
I like to cook on weekends.
🔪 Necesito cortar las verduras primero.
I need to cut the vegetables first.
I need to cut the vegetables first.
🍞 Voy a hornear pan fresco hoy.
I am going to bake fresh bread today.
I am going to bake fresh bread today.
😋 Quiero probar la sopa.
I want to try the soup.
I want to try the soup.
💬 Everyday Conversations
Preparing dinner:
A: ¿Qué estás preparando?
B: Estoy preparando una sopa de verduras.
A: ¿Te ayudo a cortar las verduras?
B: Sí, gracias.
A: What are you preparing?
B: I'm preparing vegetable soup.
A: Shall I help you cut the vegetables?
B: Yes, thank you.
A: ¿Qué estás preparando?
B: Estoy preparando una sopa de verduras.
A: ¿Te ayudo a cortar las verduras?
B: Sí, gracias.
A: What are you preparing?
B: I'm preparing vegetable soup.
A: Shall I help you cut the vegetables?
B: Yes, thank you.
Trying the food:
A: Prueba la salsa.
B: Está muy buena.
A: ¿Necesita más sal?
B: No, está perfecta.
A: Try the sauce.
B: It's very good.
A: Does it need more salt?
B: No, it's perfect.
A: Prueba la salsa.
B: Está muy buena.
A: ¿Necesita más sal?
B: No, está perfecta.
A: Try the sauce.
B: It's very good.
A: Does it need more salt?
B: No, it's perfect.
📝 Example Sentences
🥄 Ella mezcla los ingredientes con una cuchara.
She mixes the ingredients with a spoon.
She mixes the ingredients with a spoon.
🔥 Mi madre hornea pan fresco los domingos.
My mother bakes fresh bread on Sundays.
My mother bakes fresh bread on Sundays.
🍳 Frío el pollo hasta que esté dorado.
I fry the chicken until it is golden.
I fry the chicken until it is golden.
🍽️ Servimos la cena a las siete.
We serve dinner at seven.
We serve dinner at seven.
🥗 Preparamos la ensalada juntos.
We prepare the salad together.
We prepare the salad together.
🍰 Compartimos el postre después de cenar.
We share the dessert after dinner.
We share the dessert after dinner.
🏆 Final Practice
Try saying each phrase before pressing play.
- Voy a preparar la cena.
- Necesito cortar las verduras.
- Agrega un poco de sal.
- Mezcla bien los ingredientes.
- Voy a hornear el pan.
- Quiero probar la sopa.